Special: The SPANISH FLU and You – with Nick Cohen and Laura Spinney

<p>What can the Spanish Flu of 1918 tell us about coping with Coronavirus – and maybe the next pandemic too? Nick Cohen of <em>The Observer</em> talks to <strong>Laura Spinney</strong>, author of <a href="https://www.hive.co.uk/Product/Laura-Spinney/Pale-Rider--The-Spanish-Flu-of-1918-and-How-it-Changed-the-World/25246706" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Pale Rider</em></a><em>: The Spanish Flu Of 1918 And How It Changed The World</em>, about the lessons from possibly the greatest public health disaster in history.</p><p><br></p><p>Did populations weakened by the First World War provide a fertile breeding ground for the Spanish Flu? Is democracy really at a disadvantage when dealing with pandemics? Will post-COVID generations have to face up to the inherent viral dangers of eating meat? And the myth of a new Roaring Twenties: will we go from a new Spanish Flu to a new Wall Street Crash without a an intervening Jazz Age?&nbsp;</p><p><br></p><ul><li>“What matters is the level of trust in a society. If it’s not there when the outbreak happens it’s very hard to create it.”&nbsp;</li><li>“Populations tend to bounce back rapidly from pandemics for the simple reason that pandemics tend not to destroy your capital cities.”&nbsp;</li><li>“This is the first digitally-witnessed pandemic. Every detail has been tracked and traced.”</li><li>“Every strain of flu that has ever circulated began as a pandemic. But the Spanish Flu was at least 25 times as virulent than most strains.”</li></ul><p><br></p><p><em>Presented by Nick Cohen. Produced by Andrew Harrison. Assistant producers Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofrenijevic. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Audio production by Alex Rees. </em><strong><em>THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.</em></strong></p> &#10;&nbsp;<br /><hr><p style='color: grey; font - size: 0.75em; '>See <a style='color: grey; ' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for privacy and opt-out information.</p>